Jollibee expands ME presence

MANILA, Philippines - Fastfood giant Jollibee Foods Corp. has ramped up its presence in the Middle East with its expansion in the United Arab Emirates.

In a disclosure to the Philippine Stock Exchange, JFC said its wholly-owned unit Golden Plate Pte. Ltd. (GPPL) forged an agreement with Golden Crown Foods LLC (GCFL) to establish a joint venture company that will own and operate Jollibee stores in the UAE.

Both companies will share control and management of the joint venture equally even as GCFL will own 51 percent of the new company.

The initial funding for the UAE company is about $80,000 (roughly P3.57 million).

UAE is one of the most-developed economies in Western Asia with the world’s seventh-highest GDP per capita. Its most populous city of Dubai has emerged as a global city and a business gateway for the Middle East and Africa.

The JFC Group currently has 42 outlets, all franchised, in the Middle East composed of Jollibee stores (nine in Saudi Arabia, four in Qatar and three in Kuwait) and 26 Chowking stores (five Qatar, two Oman and 19 in the UAE.

Systemwide sales in the Middle East grew 28 percent last year, JFC said.

JFC currently operates the largest food service company in the country with a total of 2,181 outlets as of end-December 2013.

Overseas, the group ended 2013 with a total of 583.

The group had a total network of 2,763 stores worldwide as of end-December last year.